


Assistance

by aradiachiba



Category: Dresden Files - Butcher
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-12-21
Updated: 2009-12-21
Packaged: 2017-10-04 21:36:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,555
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/34372
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aradiachiba/pseuds/aradiachiba
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An angry Red Court vampire, a demanding mob boss, and mortal peril.  Just another day at the office for Harry Dresden.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Assistance

**Author's Note:**

  * For [tosca](https://archiveofourown.org/users/tosca/gifts).



"Damn it. Damn it, damn it, damn it." I heard Dresden's voice in the darkness but couldn't see him. It was too dark to see anything. I stayed silent for the moment, letting him vent.

We were sitting in the darkness of the warehouse, just the two of us. Myself- Gentleman John Marcone, and private investigator and Warden Harry Dresden. It was cold and dark. _She_ was out there, and we were trying to figure out how to kill her before she killed us. The Red Court vampire who wanted my blood. And the blood of anyone who got in her way.

My arm was going numb where her teeth had grazed it, and I could feel the intoxication setting in. I hated the narcotic feeling, but it was still tolerable. And I was not going to mention it. Not right now, when Dresden was trying to figure out a way to get us out of this.

I heard a soft fumbling noise and a dim bluish white glow formed around Dresden's pentacle, illuminating our little corner better than the few rays of moonlight had. I looked around, trying to find a suitable weapon. My gun was lying too far for me to reach, useless. And as it was an automatic, it was as likely to fail as work with Dresden here. Our corner was remarkably bare, and I ground my teeth in frustration. Apparently, the only weapon I had at my disposal was Harry Dresden himself.

I hated feeling helpless.

"How the hell did I let them talk me into this?" I heard Dresden mutter to himself. I knew it was rhetorical, but I answered anyway.

"Because you didn't have a choice, Mr. Dresden." I smiled coolly. It was true. Since I was a signatory of the Unseelie Accords, the White Council had to give me help when I formally requested it. And of course, since Harry was the local representative, he was stuck acting as my bodyguard as I dealt with an angry Red Court vampire. And he had hated every minute of it. I knew he regretted helping me become a signatory.

He turned to glare at me. It was an impressive glare, and if I had been another man, or had I not seen into his soul, I might have been frightened. He could deal quite harshly with someone who had threatened him or those he fought to protect, but I had done none of that. And while I knew he did not approve of what I did, he would not harm me. I just calmly met his eyes, smiling to myself as he seemed to get even angrier. I had to work hard to keep myself from giggling at the look on his face. It was far too easy to get him mad, and in my almost giddy state, it was far too much fun.

Not that I would ever tell him that, of course.

He turned his back on me and I could almost see the gears in his head turning. He was trying to figure out how to get us out of here. He was going through the ways to kill a vampire. I knew a little, but not enough. Not nearly enough. Which was why I had requested the White Council's help in the first place. That and I knew that Harry Dresden has a knack for surviving that which would kill any other man, something I needed right now.

There was a quiet noise from behind me. I glanced back into the darkness warily as Dresden spun around to look. We both saw the mouse scurrying behind me. It was just a mouse. We were still safe. Harry settled his shoulders and looked back at the rest of the room again. His face settled into the thoughtful look, the picture of the brooding wizard. I wondered idly if he had practiced the expression in a mirror to get it right.

There was a crashing sound from inside the warehouse. We both jumped. Dresden reacted faster than I could, dousing the light from his pentacle. We sat in the darkness again, just listening.

"Come out, come out wherever you are!" A high, reedy voice called from the other end of the room called out gleefully. She cackled. "I'll find you anyway. Give up now and I'll make it quick." We could both hear the lie in her voice. It was coming closer.

"Tell me again what you did to piss her off, Marcone?" Dresden muttered so quietly that only I could hear.

"I told you before, Mr. Dresden, it was just business." I informed him just as quietly. There was another crashing sound, this one much closer. I winced.

"This sounds like a lot more than just business, Marcone." He accused. "Whatever you did to her must have been personal."

I just shrugged, knowing that he would not be able to see it in the darkness. My business was my own, and I would not tell him more details than he needed to know. Besides, he probably would not approve anyway. He never approved of my business.

"You might as well give up, my dear." The high, mocking voice called out, closer still. She was probably halfway across the big warehouse by now. She would find us in mere moments. "I can smell your blood. And your fear."

"I knew I shouldn't have worn 'Eau de Terror' this morning." Dresden muttered. I allowed myself a smile, my amusement hidden by the darkness. I wondered if making light of things helped him to think better.

I hoped so. Our situation was very grim. We had run out of places to run and hide. The vampiress's thralls had cornered us in the warehouse, breaking my leg and disarming me before Dresden had used a large portion of his magic to incapacitate the last one. I had dragged myself to the corner, but I could run no further, and I wasn't sure that Dresden had much magic left in him. It had really been a long few days.

I scowled in frustration. I hated feeling cornered, helpless. It was a situation I rarely allowed myself to get into. It was a situation that had become all too familiar the last few days.

Without warning, a blindingly bright light flared up from Dresden's pentacle, lighting up the warehouse. I looked at the tableau in front of me in surprise. The vampire was there, mere yards from where I sprawled. Dresden was on his feet, staff in one hand, gun in the other, pointing both weapons at the vampire. I was surprised by the gun. He knew that bullets would not kill a vampire, I did not know what he was intending to do.

To my surprise, he aimed low, pointing the gun at her stomach. Her glee turned to horror as he pulled the trigger. A hole opened in her abdomen, blood gushing from the wound. The vampire fell on the ground, a look of hate and pain filling her eyes.

Dresden walked calmly over to her, transferring the gun to his staff hand and pulling a short blade from somewhere in his leather coat. The vampire's eyes widened in real fear as he quickly and brutally used the blade to cut deeply into her stomach. I watched in shock as her body withered into itself until there was nothing left. She was dead.

"Not so invincible after all, were you?" He asked the shriveled corpse.

I looked at Dresden with new respect. It was not easy to kill at close range, and he had done it with no hesitation. He offered a hand, helping me up without looking at me. He helped me to limp to the door, practically pushing me along in his haste.

Rather than being offended, I found myself amused. I knew he wanted this to be over as soon as possible. He did not like me, and he had made no secret of the fact that he resented having to help me with my troubles. He did not even take the time to crack jokes as he helped me to the entrance of the warehouse.

Just as we got there, the door burst open, revealing Ms. Gard, my normal bodyguard. She looked at the withered form of the vampire on the floor, Dresden's blood spattered coat, and my injured leg. She nodded and took my weight from Dresden. He looked relieved as he followed us.

"I'm sorry I was too late to help, boss. I was held up." Ms. Gard said, looking genuinely disappointed. I nodded my understanding as she helped me into the waiting car without another word.

"So that's it, this is done?" He gestured between us, wanting to make sure that his part of this mess was over. "I don't have to help you anymore, right?"

I inclined my head in thanks to Dresden, who was standing in the doorway of the warehouse. "It is, Mr. Dresden. As signatory of the Accords, I release you from your obligations. I thank you for your assistance, Mr. Dresden. It has been a pleasure working with you. I hope we will have the opportunity to do so again." I smiled at the look of horror on his face as Ms. Gard closed the door behind me.


End file.
